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Jeff Lorber: Chemistry in Fusion

By Jim Worsley

I don't know that anyone would confuse Jeff Lorber with a mad scientist, but you know, as they say, if the shoe fits. Lorber is far from mad, so okay, let's take that out of the equation. However, if the art of music can be further developed and shaped by scientific measures then Lorber resembles Albert Einstein. Perhaps more on his mother's side (that's a joke). Seriously now, the chemistry that the Grammy winning multi-talented keyboardist, composer, and producer captures ...

Earth Songs: Music after the Age of the Anthropocene

By Jakob Baekgaard

One of the most fascinating things about art is its ability to imagine new worlds. Art can depict a world that is already there, but it can also conjure a dystopia or utopia, a future world around the corner. Whether art should concern itself with the world at all is an important question, but as the effects of climate change are felt increasingly around the globe, it has become apparent that the Earth is vulnerable. The age ...

Frédéric Gomes at les Deux Moulins

By Martin McFie

Frédéric Gomes les Deux Moulins Paris / Montmartre June 13, 2019 To the right of the famous Moulin Rouge dinner show theatre in jny: Paris, a narrow cobbled street rises towards Montmartre. It is rue Lepic, where Les Deux Moulins (the two windmills) is situated. It appears as a traditional Parisian brasserie, with good food in a bar/restaurant, neon and bright lights reflecting off the copper bartop and beer taps. This brasserie ...

Joseph Branciforte/Theo Bleckmann: LP1

By Dan Bilawsky

Is sound something to bathe in? Can music envelop? Does the art of improvisation lend itself to ambient sound painting? The answer to all three questions, according to this collaboration, is “yes." LP1, the debut release on Joseph Branciforte's greyfade imprint, finds the producer and electronics ace teaming up with vocalist Theo Bleckmann to conjure variable atmospheres. The result of some studio experimentation leading up to a 2018 performance alongside the legendary Ryuichi Sakamoto, the four improvisations ...

André Carvalho: The Garden Of Earthly Delights

By Friedrich Kunzmann

When eyeing the triptych oil painting The Garden of Earthly Delights, by Renaissance painter Hieronymous Bosch, the observer often drifts off and zooms in on a very specific segment of the painting. Defined by opposing themes and motifs, the eye wanders from left to right, from Adam and Eve in peaceful nature, over birds and buildings and gatherings of people, until all hell breaks loose on the right panel which, coincidentally, carries the unofficial title “Musical Hell." Much like the ...

Charlie Apicella: Groove Machine

By Don Phipps

On Groove Machine, Charlie Apicalla & Iron City serves up a gumbo of styles that run from New Orleans blues and Chicago funk to Motown and New York bop. The combination makes for a “groovy" listening experience—road music that will keep the head nodding and the mind trucking. Apicella penned five of the eight numbers on the album. The other three writing credits go to Lou Donaldson, organist Radam Schwartz, and Willis Jackson. Apicella's standout guitar work glides ...

Lauren White: Life in the Modern World

By Nicholas F. Mondello

Vocalist, actress, producer.... Lauren White does it all. And, as befits a Renaissance artist, she not only excels, but also explores the unique, the compelling and the substantive. With Life in the Modern World she and her team of Los Angeles aces do precisely that, delivering 11 fine selections, most lesser-known, but each a certified gem. Things break with a lively take on Ivan Lins' “Life in the Modern World," with White complemented by energized solos by ...

3times7 Live at BIMHUIS Amsterdam

By BIMHUIS

Phineas Newborn Jr. and Miles Davis

By Joe Dimino

To commemorate the 600th full episode of Neon Jazz outta Kansas City, we focus on the life of Memphis-born bass cat Jamil Nasser. His son, Muneer, penned his biography and it's called Upright Bass: The Musical Life & Legacy of Jamil Nasser. George Joyner, Jamil Sulieman, and Jamil Nasser are three names that appear on the records of Phineas Newborn, Lou Donaldson, Red Garland, and Ahmad Jamal. These names identify one jazz bassist, composer, and jazz advocate, who made an ...

Mediterranean Jazz Bagatelles: Paolino Dalla Porta & Bebo Ferra

By Ludovico Granvassu

Italian guitarist Bebo Ferra and bassist Paolino Dalla Porta have been collaborating on various projects for almost a quarter century and they started their duo collaboration in 1997. Their original compositions represent a personal synthesis of jazz and European as well as Mediterranean musical traditions. The result is a captivating example of “chamber jazz" rich in energy, musical poetry and expressiveness supported by a refined technique. This mixtape features highlights from their extensive discographies, ...

Horace Tapscott with the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra: Live at I.C.U.U.

By Karl Ackermann

Twenty years after his death, pianist-composer Horace Tapscott is receiving the accolades that largely passed him by at the peak of his career. Firmly ensconced in the Los Angeles jazz scene, his recording career as a leader began in 1969 when his quintet released The Giant Is Awakened (Flying Dutchman). Aiee! The Phantom (Arabesque, 1996) was the last album issued in his lifetime, and there have been very few posthumous releases. 2019 has seen a resurgence of interest in Tapscott's ...

Matt Olson: 789 Miles

By David A. Orthmann

One of the most interesting things about tenor saxophonist Matt Olson's 789 Miles is something it lacks: An anxious, overriding eagerness to impress or knock the listener out at every turn. Instead, the record virtually looks you in the eye, shakes your hand, and then cordially invites you along for the ride. Olson, Hammond B-3 organist Mike Kocour and drummer Dom Moio, who comprise one-half of the notable collaborative ensemble, Unhinged Sextet, are middle-aged jazzmen whose artistry and craft runs ...